Smoking pipe



May 24, 1938. w. KREUTZ 2,118,612

SMOKING PIPE Filed May 14, 1936 INVENTOR; WALTER KREUTZ ATTORNEY.

Patented May 24, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFEQE Application May 14,

3 Claims.

My invention relates to smoking pipes and more particularly to means whereby the draw of the pipe can be varied to suit each individual.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a smoking pipe with adjustable means for varying the amount of smoke that may be drawn through the mouthpiece, thus permitting the smoker to get either a light or a heavy smoke as desired regardless of whether the tobacco is loosely or tightly packed in the bowl.

Another and more specific object of my invention is to provide a means for varying the draw of a smoking pipe which is carried by and removable with the mouth-piece when it is detached from the bowl and which is so constructed that easy cleaning of the pipe will not be obstructed.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a means for controlling the draw of a smoking pipe which is efiicient and reliable in operation, easily incorporated in a pipe, economically manufactured, and which does not necessitate any change in the present standard pipe construction.

Other objects of my invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing showing two embodiments thereof.

In the drawing Figure 1 is a view of a smoking pipe embodying my invention, the mouth-piece being separated from the bowl; Figure 2 is an enlarged longitudinal cross-sectional view of the principal parts for controlling the draw of the pipe; Figure 3 is a view of the tubular member which cooperates with the cap; Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of a modified construction; and Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 55 of Figure 4.

As is well known to pipe smokers, the present smoking pipes do not all have the same type of draw through the mouth-piece. This, of course, is due to varying cross-sectional areas of the passages in the mouth-pieces and to the varying lengths of the passages between the bowls and the open ends of the mouth-pieces. Also, the draw of a pipe is affected by the type of tobacco used and its degree of tightness in the bowl. Because of all of the above mentioned variables affecting the draw of a pipe, it is, of course, nearly impossible for a smoker to find a pipe that is "satisfactory to his particular liking as there is nothing on the pipe by which he can control the draw to suit his taste irrespective of the kind of pipe he may buy or the way he packs the tobacco in the bowl.

By the use of my invention I am enabled to overcome the above noted objectionable features found in pipes as now constructed and produce a pipe in which the draw can be so controlled as to secure the type of smoke desired.

Referring to Figures 1, 2 and 3, the bowl l oi 1936, Serial No. 79,661

the smoking pipe is provided with the usual integral stem 2 having an enlarged bore or passage 3 in communication with the interior of the bowl by the smaller passage 4. The mouth-piece 5 of the pipe is of usual construction having a central passage 6. Th inner end of the mouthpiece has integrally formed thereon a reduced portion i, which is of the same diameter as the inner diameter of the bore 3, whereby the mouthpiece may be connected to the stem of the bowl by inserting the reduced portion I into the bore 3. All of the structure just described is well known and considered as standard pipe construction.

In accordance with my invention, I provide the connecting end of the mouth-piece with a tubular element 8, which is adapted to be inserted into a bore 9 at the end of the mouth-piece, this bore being nothing more than an enlargement of the passage 6 of the mouth-piece. If desired, the tubular element may extend the entire length of the passage 6. The outer end of the tubular element is cut away in the manner shown in order to produce an extended portion In of semi-cylindrical formation. Integral projections H are left upon the end of the extension ill for a purpose which will soon become apparent. A cap l2, having an internal diameter substantially equal to the external diameter of the tubular element 8, is slidably mounted upon the extension II The construction is such that the cooperative relation between the tubular element and the cap forms a variable orifice [3, the area of this orifice depending upon the distance between the open end of the cap and the tubular element. When the cap I2 is slid inwardly upon the extension l!) as far as possible, the orifice 13 will be completely closed and when it is slid in the op posite direction to a point adjacent the end of the extension, the orifice will be fully open and of an area equal to or greater than the cross-sectional area of the passage 5 in the mouth-piece.

The projections ll, above referred to, may be bent in and out as desired and in this manner provide the desired amount of friction between the inner surface ofthe cap l2 and the extension to insure that the cap will remain in an adjusted position.

The cap I2 is of a smaller outer diameter than the bore 3 of the stem of the bowl and when the mouth-piece is connected to the stem, the tubular element and cap will lie in the bore 3. There is suflicient space between the wall of this bore and the cap that the total cross-sectional area of the space will be as great as the cross-sectional area of the passage in the mouth-piece, thus not decreasing the total amount of smoke which can be drawn through the mouth-piece passage when the orifice i3 is opened to its fullest extent.

Referring to Figures 4 and 5, I have shown a slight modification of the structure shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3. The tubular element 8 is formed with an extension ID in the same manner as the extension In previously described but the projections ll eliminated. The external surface of the extension It! has formed thereon threads l4 and the cap I2 is provided with internal threads l5 for cooperation with the external threads l4. The movement of the cap l2 with respect to the extension In, to vary the area of the orifice I3, is now accomplished by a screwing instead of a sliding operation.

Since the use of internal threads on the cap l2 may necessitate increasing the thickness of the wall of the cap and thereby decreasing the amount of space between said cap and the wall of the bore 3 of the stem, when the cap is positioned in said bore, the external surface of the cap is provided with a plurality of spaced longitudinal grooves I 6 in order to insure that the cap will not in any way obstruct the free passage of smoke.

The tubular element and the cooperating cap may be made of any type of material found desirable, as, for example, metal or possibly a phenolic condensation product. However, in the construction shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, I prefer to make the parts out of metal and the tubular element 8 especially should be made from some deformable metal in order that the projections may be easily bent to the proper position to form the desired amount of friction between said projections and the interior surface of the cap l2.

From the foregoing description of my invention it is readily seen that the draw of the pipe may be controlled as desired by varying the area of the orifice l3. The pipe may be originally constructed with the passage 6 of the mouthpiece as large or as long as desirable and yet the draw of the pipe may be changed to suit the taste of the individual purchaser. If the smoker is in the habit of packing his tobacco tightly in the bowl and at the same time desires a heavy smoke, he may properly adjust the orifice l3 so that the area thereof is as large as the cross-sectional area of the stem 6. On the other hand, if the smoker desires a light smoke, he may decrease the draw of the pipe by decreasing the size of the orifice l3 to the desired area. If the smoker packs his tobacco loosely in the bowl and desires a heavy smoke, it will not be necessary to open the orifice to such an extent as would be necessary when the tobacco is tightly packed. Also, for a light smoke with loosely packed tobacco, the orifice I3 would be closed to a greater extent than when the tobacco was tightly packed. Also, by the use of my invention a long pipe can be made to draw like a stubby pipe or vice versa by a proper adjustment of the orifice.

As can be readily seen, my invention does not require that the general construction of the pipe be changed in any manner except possibly increasing the length of the bore 3 in the stem of the bowl. Its use on a pipe also does not hinder the cleaning of the pipe for the cap I2 may be quickly removed and the absorbent pipe cleaner passed directly through the passage in the mouth-piece in the usual manner.

When my invention is embodied in a pipe, it is to be noted that the cap 12 is very efiective in preventing any moisture, which may seep down the passage 6 of the mouth-piece from the smokers mouth, from passing on to the bottom of the bowl of the pipe and causing What is known as a wet heel. Also, the cap prevents any fine tobacco from being sucked into the passage of the mouth-piece and thereby clogging up the pipe.

Being aware of the possibility of modifications in the particular structure herein described without departing from the fundamental principles of my invention, I do not intend that its scope be limited except as set forth by the appended claims.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a tobacco pipe, the combination of a mouthpiece adapted to be detachably connected to a pipe bowl and having a passage therethrough, a tubular element having one end extending into the passage of the mouthpiece and provided at its other end with an integral semi-cylindrical extension, and a cylindrical cap having a closed end and telescopically positioned on said extension for longitudinal movement, the end edge of said cap being cooperatively associated with the edge portion of the tubular element adjacent the point of joinder of the extension to thereby form a variable orifice for controlling the volume of smoke that can be drawn through the mouthpiece, said tubular element and extension when the cap is removed forming no obstruction to the free passage of a cleaning element in an axial direction through the stem and tubular element.

2. In a tobacco pipe, the combination of a mouthpiece adapted to be detachably connected to the pipe bowl and having a passage therethrough, a tubular element having one end extending into the passage of the mouthpiece and provided at its other end with an integral semicylindrical extension, said extension being provided with resilient projections, and a cylindrical cap having a closed end and telescopically positioned on said extension for longitudinal adjustment, said projections frictionally cooperating with the inner wall of the cap to hold said cap in adjusted position, the end edge of said cap being cooperatively associated with the edge portion of the tubular element adjacent the point of joinder of the extension to thereby form a variable orifice for controlling the volume of smoke that can be drawn through the mouthpiece, said tubular element and extension when the cap is removed forming no obstruction to the free passage of a cleaning element in an axial direction through the stem and tubular element.

3. In a tobacco pipe, the combination of a mouthpiece adapted to be detachably connected to a pipe bowl and having a passage therethrough, a tubular element having one end extending into the passage of the mouthpiece and provided at its other end with an externally threaded integral semi-cylindrical extension, and a cylindrical cap having a closed end and internal threads and adapted to be screwed on said extension for longitudinal adjustment, the end edge of said cap being cooperatively associated with the edge portion of the tubular element adjacent the point of joinder of the extension to thereby form a variable orifice for controlling the volume of smoke that can be drawn through the mouthpiece, said tubular element and extension when the cap is removed forming no obstruction to the free passage of a cleaning element in, an axial direction through the stem and tubular element.

WALTER KREUTZ. 

